/*
 * Copyright (C) 2009 M. Hautle.
 * 
 * This file is part of TrackedBean.
 * 
 * TrackedBean is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public License as published by the Free
 * Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
 * 
 * TrackedBean is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR
 * A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU Lesser General Public License for more details.
 * 
 * You should have received a copy of the GNU Lesser General Public License along with TrackedBean. If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 */
package ch.trackedbean.loaders.lists;

import java.util.*;

/**
 * Listloader for {@link ListManager}.<br>
 * Implement this interface to provide a loader for a specified list.
 * 
 * @author M. Hautle
 * @param <T> The type to load
 */
public interface IListLoader<T> {
	/**
	 * Loads the list for the given key.
	 * 
	 * @param type The content type of the list
	 * @param subType Additional string specifying the "subtype" to load (may be null)
	 * @param settings Optional settings for the load (may be null)
	 * @return The list for the given key
	 * @throws Exception If an error occoured during the load
	 */
	List<T> load(Class<T> type, String subType, Map<Object, Object> settings) throws Exception;

	/**
	 * Flag indicating if the result of {@link #load(Class,String,Map)}, using the passed arguments, should be cached.
	 * 
	 * @param type The content type of the list
	 * @param subType Additional string specifying the "subtype" to load (may be null)
	 * @param settings Optional settings for the load (may be null)
	 * @return True if the result should be chached
	 */
	boolean cacheResult(Class<T> type, String subType, Map<Object, Object> settings);
}
